look for a dog to kick



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look for a dog to kick

To seek out someone to blame or castigate, especially someone who is not at fault. (Usually said in the continuous tense.) My dad had a famously short fuse when we were growing up, so we soon learned to get out of his way when he was looking for a dog to kick. The troubled economy is the result of many factors, but the president is usually the first one blamed by voters looking for a dog to kick.
See also: dog, kick, look

Common Names:

NameGenderPronouncedUsage
Yoshikoyo-shee-ko, yosh-koJapanese
Dominica-English (Rare), Late Roman
Briseida-Literature
UrsulaUR-sə-lə (English), UR-syə-lə (English), OOR-soo-lah (Finnish)English, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, Dutch, Finnish, Late Roman
Stella (2)-Greek
Akantha-Greek Mythology